OriginalShipping-Underground
by RedXGreenFTW
Summary: WARNING CONTAINS: Pedophilia, rape, yaoi, violence. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. The day Red and Green are supposed to start their journey as Pokemon trainers goes to sh*t when Team Rocket comes out of nowhere and attacks Pallet Town. Their lives are changed forever as a couple of Rockets try to get a ransom for the boys, but end up having to do something else with them when no one pays.
1. Chapter 1

The sun was shining and there wasn't a cloud in the sky above Pallet Town. It was suiting weather for such a special day. Two children, boys named Red and Green who have known each other forever, were currently at the laboratory of Professor Oak to receive their very first Pokémon. Today would mark the day they began their journeys as Pokémon trainers. At the moment, the two boys were listening to Professor Oak explain what they have already heard before, how their life was about to be one big adventure.

Red listened in excitedly with a big grin on his face, hanging onto Oak's every word. Green stood with his hands in his pockets, ignoring the entire speech that he had already heard many times before. At last Professor Oak finished his speech, and issued two Pokémon to the rookie trainers: a Pikachu for Red and an Eevee for Green. Before Oak could even give the boys Pokedexes, Green immediately challenged Red to a battle.

It would be the first battle for both of them. But sadly, that battle did not occur. Before either of the boys could even send out a Pokémon, the ground started shaking. Before anyone could react to this, the back wall of the laboratory was destroyed, and several men in black uniforms stood there with an Onix. Red and Green hardly had any time to do anything before they were both grabbed by two Rockets and their Pokemon were taken from them.

Red and Green struggled to no avail as they were both blindfolded and their hands were tied behind their backs as they were both taken out of the lab. "Let go of us now or I'll hurt you!" Green yelled, only earning him a slap to the face to shut him up. He was just glad he was blindfolded so that no one saw the tears that he couldn't help but let loose at the sharp pain. Green no longer made threats, and Red kept asking questions as to where they were going and what the Rockets were going to do to them.

After walking and running and pushing, the Rockets finally stopped with Red and Green someplace quiet. They were not untied nor were their blindfolds removed. "Are the targets acquired?" one Rocket said. Someone replied in a walkie-talkie, but neither Green nor Red could hear. "We went in but we just grabbed a couple of kids. I recognize one as Samuel Oak's grandson, Green. He might fetch a ransom. I don't know who the other kid is, though." The Rocket said.

Green figured he would be safe for the time being if all the Rockets wanted was a ransom, but he was a bit concerned for Red. Would they ask for a ransom for him as well, or would they have other plans? And what were these targets the Rockets spoke of? Why had they and a few others shown up and break into the lab? "Wait, we may have acquired the targets. We have two Pokemon here as well. But I don't think they're the ones we're looking for…" a Rocket said into the walkie-talkie.

After a minute of talking, Red and Green were both grabbed again. "You take them to the rendezvous and wait. I'm going back to see what else we can get from the lab." One Rocket said, and Green and Red heard him take leave. The Rocket sent out a Fearow and he grabbed Red and set him on Fearow's back, doing the same with Green. "What are you damn Rockets doing?" Green demanded. Red honestly had no idea what was going on and he was too terrified to retaliate.

"Shut up. You should only be concerned with not falling to your death." The Rocket said, also getting on the Fearow before it took off. Green scowled and tried to keep a firm grip of Fearow with his feet. Red tried to grab at something with his hands, not thinking to use his feet, and he started falling off when they took off. He would have been dead if the Rocket hadn't grabbed him by the collar of his jacket. "Stupid kid." The Rocket said, setting Red down on Fearow again and holding onto him this time.

It was only a few minutes before Fearow landed, and the Rocket got off before returning Fearow to its Pokeball, making Red and Green fall on their butts. The Rocket grabbed both Red and Green and escorted them into some building. Neither one of them had any idea where they were now. They were both taken through the building until they were lead to a room where they were forced to sit down on two chairs next to each other when another Rocket tied their feet and arms to the chair.

At last when they were both tied up, their blindfolds were removed. They found themselves in a room with grey, cracking walls only illuminated by one light bulb. In the room with them were three Rockets. One leaned against the wall at the back corner of the room smoking a cigarette. Another sat at a rickety table counting money. The one who had just tied Red and Green to the chairs now sat across from the guy counting the money.

"What are these kids here for?" the Rocket in the corner asked, dabbing his cigarette and allowing the ashes to fall to the floor. The two Rockets looked over to the one who had brought Red and Green in. "Bruce and I just went and grabbed the first things we saw: these runts. We think that one could go for a ransom, he's the Professor's grandson. Not sure about the other kid, we don't even know who he is." The Rocket said. The other two looked over at Red and Green. Red stared at his lap to avoid eye contact and Green glared at them.

"So where's Bruce?" the Rocket in the corner asked, dropping his depleted cigarette and stepping on it. The Rocket shrugged and started helping the other count money. "He went back to the lab to see what else he could get, told me he would show up here soon. I think Greg is still back there too. Did either of you get those Pokémon we were looking for?" the Rocket asked. The one sitting across from him shrugged his shoulders.

"We thought you got them. Bruce called in and said you both found some Pokémon, so where are they?" the Rocket asked. Red looked up upon hearing this. "I don't know, Bruce took those Pokémon with him." The Rocket who had brought them in said. The other two sighed, annoyed. The one in the corner took out a cell phone and dialed a number. He handed the phone to the Rocket who had brought Red and Green in. "Find out if Oak will pay a ransom." He said.

"What if he doesn't?" Red whispered to himself nervously. Apparently he was louder than he thought because all eyes were on him. He tried to somehow sink into the chair he was tied to when the Rocket who owned the cell phone approached him and looked him in the eyes. Red swallowed hard, and tried to appear brave. "Well if it turns out you kids aren't worth anything, then there'd be no point to keeping you around. What do you think is going to happen to you?" the Rocket asked.

"You'll let us go?" Red asked weakly. The Rocket laughed, only scaring the heck out of Red even more. The other Rockets told the one laughing to shut up. Apparently Professor Oak was on the phone. "We have your grandson here with us. Now if you want him back in one piece you can have him for, let's say, a hundred thousand Poké. Seems pretty fair, you probably make lots of money as a professor of your standards. What do you say?" the Rocket on the phone asked.

Silence flooded the room. After a long pause, the Rocket spoke again. "I see. Well if that's the case then you won't be seeing him at all. Now there's another kid here from your little town…" the Rocket trailed off, looking at Red. "What's your name, kid?" the Rocket asked. Red quietly gave the man his name. "Did you hear that? We got some kid named Red here too. Though I doubt you want him if you wouldn't pay for your own—" the Rocket stopped mid-sentence, and his expression was one of surprise.

"…Well the price is the same. One hundred thousand Poké." The Rocket said. There was more silence. Suddenly the Rocket hung up the phone and handed it back to the other Rocket. "He refuses to pay for either of the kids. There wouldn't be anyone else related to these kids with money. Nobody else has money in Pallet Town." The Rocket said. The others groaned. Just then, two more Rockets entered the room, looking very pleased with themselves. One held three Pokéballs.

"Targets acquired. Bruce said you guys found a couple of kids, are they worth anything?" the Rocket holding the three Pokéballs asked. One Rocket shook his head. "Oak won't pay for a ransom. So I guess the next thing to do is get rid of these kids." The Rocket who had called Professor Oak said. Red and Green both felt their hearts drop to their stomachs. Were they going to be alright or not? What was going to happen to them?

"Why don't we just let them go? We don't need them and they were blindfolded the whole way in here, they haven't seen anything." The Rocket, apparently called Bruce, suggested. None of the others supported this idea. "They've seen our faces, you idiot. When we say get rid of them, we mean it literally." One Rocket said. Red felt tears beginning to well up in his eyes again and he bit his cheek. Green noticed this.

"You'd be stupid to get rid of us!" Green snapped, and all eyes were on him. "Even if stupid gramps won't give you money for us, I'm still Professor Oak's one and only grandson! _Somebody_ would pay to see us alive!" Green remarked. Red stared at his friend in shock. The Rockets looked at each other. "I think the kid's got a point." The Rocket who brought them in said. The others glared at him and he went silent.

"Hold on, who says we have to get rid of them?" the one who brought in the three Pokéballs asked. The others looked at him. "I mean, if this kid really is Oak's relative then he probably knows a good thing or two about Pokémon. He'd probably be a powerful Pokémon trainer in a few years down the road. Do we really want someone like him going against us?" the Rocket went on. The others let his words sink in, then one piped up; "What are you suggesting, Greg?"

"I'm saying we should make him one of us. I think the Boss would approve of a new recruit if he proved himself worthy." The Rocket named Greg said. The others were actually considering this new idea. The one who had been counting money stood up. "Okay, so we'll see what the Boss thinks of this Oak kid here, but what about this kid? Named Red?" the Rocket said, gesturing to Red. He was wondering what would become of himself as well. The others tried to think of something when the one who had been smoking spoke first.

"Let's sell him to Dave Charleston." He suggested. The other Rockets looked over at him, disgusted by the very thought of it. "Oh come on, we can't let the kid go and we might as well get a price off of him. I doubt any of you meat heads have any better ideas?" the Rocket said. The others still looked disturbed, but no one seemed to have a better idea. "Then it's settled. Bruce, you and I will take this Red kid to Dave in Viridian Forest and see if we can fetch a decent price. You three take Green to the Boss." Greg said.

"You're sick, Greg. Not even Charleston would ruin a kid." One of the Rockets said, untying Green from his chair. Red was also being untied, and he was trying his hardest not to cry or beg as he imagined the worst case scenarios of what could possibly happen to him when he was in the hands of this Dave Charleston character. "You can't do this!" Green yelled. "You can't just go and _sell_ someone, that's just wrong! I'm going to get all of you for this, or my name isn't—"

The Rocket named Greg slapped Green, silencing him and leaving a red mark across his face. Nothing else was said as both Red and Green were blindfolded once more and their hands were tied back. Two Rockets escorted Red outside of the building and went one way, while three Rockets took Green the other way. Both groups flew away, Red's group on a Pidgeotto and Green's group on a Fearow.

Green no longer retorted by speaking out nor did he try to fight back. Somehow he felt more hopeless now that Red was elsewhere. Back in that building, when he saw how scared Red was, he felt like he had to be the brave one. He felt like he had to defend Red somehow. But now that he was alone and still fearing for his own life, he felt like there wasn't much to protect. Hell, not even his own grandfather cared for his well-being.

It was about ten minutes before the Fearow had landed somewhere, but Green was still blindfolded and could not see where he was. He did not ask for their current location. They entered a building and went down a flight of stairs. At the bottom, Green's blindfold was removed at last and he immediately looked around. Wherever he was, there were Rockets everywhere. It appeared to be some sort of office building, but there were only Rockets walking around. Was this their headquarters?

Green was escorted down a few more flight of stairs rather than just being taken down the elevator right next to it. On the bottom floor, which was the fourth one down, Green was taken into a room where two Rockets stood outside one each side of the door as though they were guarding it. In the room a man with dark hair looked up from papers he had on his desk. "You three were sent with two others as a unit to Pallet Town to retrieve three Pokémon from the laboratory of Professor Oak. Give me your report." The man said, not even glancing at Green.

"Well Boss," one Rocket started, "We got the three Pokemon you asked for. We also managed to find four thousand five hundred Poké in the process." He said, and the other two placed three Pokeballs and an amount of money on the man's desk. The Boss stared at the Rocket who spoke. "Where are the others?" he asked coldly. The two Rockets looked over to the one who had spoken. They had done their job, why did the Boss seem so irritated? Had they messed up?

"Well you see, while we were at the lab we also grabbed two kids sort of by mistake. This one here is Professor Oak's grandkid, we don't know who the other was. Bruce and Greg went to Dave Charleston's place to see if they could fetch a price for the other kid and we brought Oak's grandkid here." The Rocket explained. The Boss looked over at Green. In turn, he glared back. "Why did you bring this orphan here?" the Boss asked.

Green blinked. How the hell did this man know Green didn't have parents? The Rockets were getting nervous. "Well, Oak refused to pay a ransom, and we figured… that… he'd make a good recruit." The Rocket said. The Boss gave him a quizzical look. "Why would you ever think that?" the Boss asked, sounding more curious than irritated. The Rocket looked to his comrades for help. The argument made supporting the decision of bringing Green over here sounded much better when someone else was explaining it.

"Well you see, Boss," one of the Rockets started, "This is Professor Oak's grandson after all. He probably knows a good thing or two about Pokémon and will be a good Pokémon trainer. We figured it'd be best to have him on our side." He explained. The other two nodded their heads in agreement, and waited to hear their Boss' answer. The Boss looked down at his desk where the three Pokéballs and the Poké were, and he waved his hand. "Do with him what you will." He said, sighing.

The three Rockets escorted Green out of the Boss' office and led him up a flight of stairs and down a few corridors. They took him into a room and unbound his hands. The room had multiple bunk beds and there were three small bathrooms at the back. "You, go get a Pokémon. You can go get a uniform." One Rocket commanded, and the other two left the room. Green folded his arms and glared up at the Rocket who remained. "Hey kid, you've only got two options: death or Team Rocket. Getting angry won't help you." The Rocket said.

Green scowled, but the damn Rocket was right. "Just do whatever you're told and you'll get by fine. You can have this bed." The Rocket said, gesturing to the top bunk closest to the door they came in through. A minute later one of the Rockets returned with a single Pokéball, and he handed it to Green. "You start off with one Zubat. If you're good enough you'll probably get more Pokemon as you go along. Of course you could try to catch your own, if you even know how to." The Rocket said. Green made no comment.

At that moment, the third Rocket came in with folded black garments. "This was the smallest size I could find." He said, handing Green the uniform. The three Rockets left the room after telling Green to quickly change and come out. Green first tried to find another way out of the room, a way of escape. There was only a vent that would be way too small for him to crawl through. Then he remembered that they were probably underground in here.

Sighing, Green gave up. He would have to play along for the time being and find a way of escape later. He unfolded the uniform and laid it out on the bed. He felt like burning the damn thing. Why the hell did there have to be a giant red 'R' on the shirt? Who was the idiot who thought that was a good idea? Nowhere near done complaining, Green just wore the uniform over his own clothing. It was too large for him; he nearly tripped on the pants and the shirt went below his waist. He tucked the shirt in and rolled up the pant legs. Just before he left, he looked back on the bed. A black hat remained on the sheets. No way in hell would he wear a stupid hat.

Green exited the room and into the hallway where the three Rockets had waited for him. They started walking away, and Green followed them. He looked all around, trying to memorize each corridor. Tonight, when everyone was asleep, he would take his leave. He needed to find an officer or somebody and get help. "Where are we going?" Green asked. They started going up a flight of stairs. "First thing's first, we need to see if you're even capable of anything. So you're going to go steal something." A Rocket said.

-Meanwhile—

As soon as the Pidgeotto had landed, Red was nearly pushed off of the bird Pokémon and hid blindfold was removed. He found himself in a forest with the two Rockets. As soon as the Pidgeotto was returned to its Pokéball, they started walking. Red thought he was in the Viridian Forest, as it was the only forest he really knew. There was the small forest all around Pallet Town, but it had no name. Pallet Town… Red missed it already.

Red already knew what was going to happen to him, but only to some extent. All he knew is that the two Rockets who brought him here were going to try to sell him to a man named Dave Charleston. Apparently that was a bad thing, as the other Rockets seemed to disapprove of the idea. Red didn't like the idea of being sold to anyone as though he was a mere object one bit, but he believed the only other option would be death. At least he wasn't told to join Team Rocket.

Red started thinking about Green. Somehow the brunette had managed to stay so brave even when the Rockets were considering killing them both. And Green even stood up for Red against the criminals. Red really wanted to know how Green was doing, but he could only hope that Team Rocket wasn't hurting him. He assumed they weren't, as they said they wanted Green to join them. For now, Red should just be concerned for his own well-being.

First of all, what was going to happen to him when—or, that is, if—this Charleston man bought him? Who was he? Red had never heard the name until today. Why were the Rockets so disgusted by the thought of Red being in the hands of this man? And why were they looking for Charleston in Viridian Forest of all places? Wouldn't he be living in a city or town? Red shook his head. He didn't want to ask questions, he would only assume the worse answers.

Soon the Rockets took Red off the path and into the trees. They took about ten paces before they reached a large clearing, and Red looked up in awe at the huge mansion that stood in front of him. He had been in the Viridian Forest many times before, but he certainly never found a house let alone a mansion. It looked rather old on the outside and was covered in vines, but the inside was well taken care of.

Red looked all around and saw that nearly every person inside was a woman. Each woman stared at him with curiosity and concern when they noticed he was with Rockets. Red wanted no more than to run up to one and ask for help, but he felt like it wasn't his place to do so somehow and that it would only result in consequence. Red decided to remain silent and just let the Rockets lead him through the mansion, hoping for the best.

The two Rockets took Red into a room, and Red was horrified to see a man slap a woman in the face. They stared at each other for a minute before the woman stormed out of the room. The man noticed the Rockets, and then he noticed Red. "This had better be damn well important." The man snapped, sitting at a desk and rubbing his temples. One of the Rockets pushed Red forward. "We were hoping to ring up some business." The Rocket said.

Red shook when the man looked over at him. "You want to sell this kid?" the man asked. The Rocket only nodded his head. The man lit up a cigar. "Well shit, I don't want to go to jail. How old is he, eight?" the man asked. But the Rockets were persistent. "Mr. Charleston, if the cops knew about you, you'd already be in jail. And you know that not all of your customers are just interested in women." One Rocket said.

Red had no idea what they were talking about. What did his age have to do with anything? Who are these customers? What the hell was going on around here? Charleston sighed, and dabbed his cigar in an ash tray. "Alright, let me see what he looks like first. I want to make sure he's not ugly without his clothes." Charleston said. Before Red could do anything, his wrists were unbound and his jacket was practically ripped off of him.

Red stared at the Rockets in shock as they hurried to strip him down, and he could do nothing about it. When Red was down to nothing, Charleston got up to get a better look at Red. He walked all around him, touching him in certain areas, making Red even more uncomfortable than he already was. "Alright kid, put your clothes back on. So how much were you gonna ask for him?" Charleston asked, sitting down at his desk again.

The Rockets first asked for a hundred thousand Poké, but Charleston refused to pay that price. After much bargaining, some arguing, some yelling and even a few punches here and there, they came to the concluding price of sixty thousand Poké. Charleston paid the Rockets in cash, literally taking the money out of his pockets. After receiving their money, the Rockets left without another word. That's when Red really got a good look at Dave Charleston after avoiding eye contact for a half hour.

Charleston had icy, silver-blue eyes that were enough to make a baby cry. His skin was pale, and he appeared to be in his mid-thirties. His hair was a white-blond colour and was combed back, not showing any signs of thinning or balding for a long while. Charleston was tall and muscular, over twice as tall as Red was. He wore faded, baggy jeans and an old white t-shirt with some logo Red has never seen before.

"So what's your name, runt?" Charleston asked, taking out another cigar even though he wasn't finished the one he already had. "R… Red." Red stated meekly. Charleston offered Red the cigar. Red was about to say no, as he did not smoke anything nor did he want to, but he was unnerved by Charleston's gaze. It was like he wasn't offering Red a cigar; he was commanding Red to smoke it. And so, Red accepted it. Charleston lit the cigar and Red put it to his lips, only pretending to smoke it. "So, Red. Do you know where you are?" Charleston asked.

Red shrugged his shoulders. "I think we're in Viridian Forest…" he said, taking the cigar away from his lips. Charleston laughed, startling Red just a bit. "Well yeah, but do you know what this place is? This mansion? Do you know why there are so many women here?" Charleston asked. Red shook his head. He did not know, and he had been wondering ever since he got here. "Well, go out there and talk to some of the women. Ask them why you're here. Tell them all about how you'll get your first customer tonight, too." Charleston said, holding back laughter.


	2. Chapter 2

Red wandered down several corridors of the old but still grand mansion. He had been walking around aimlessly for almost an hour, getting lost several times. He felt so out of place in such a large building full of women who would stare as he made his way. Red still had no idea what purpose the mansion or the people in it served, and he wasn't too sure he wanted to know. He was still too nervous to speak to anyone let alone ask questions.

Red was still looking down at his own shoes when he turned yet another corner and bumped into someone. He meekly apologized without even looking up before he tried to walk around the figure. But the person he had bumped into moved into his way and prevented him from leaving. Red was forced to look up at the girl who blocked his way. She appeared much younger than most of the women in the mansion, and somehow Red found her less intimidating. Maybe it was her smile.

"Are you lost?" the girl asked. Red nodded his head, surprised by how kind this girl seemed. He didn't really know her at all, but she seemed more trust worthy than most here. "I don't think you're even supposed to be here, you're just a little kid. You _do_ know where you are, don't you?" the girl asked. Red's lip twitched, and he shook his head. Maybe he would have answers to the questions he didn't have the courage to ask.

The girl looked around as if making sure no one was listening in, and then she started heading down the hallway. She turned around and gestured for Red to follow. With no real reason not to, Red followed the girl down several more corridors and into a vacant bedroom. The girl opened two large glass doors and headed out onto a balcony. Red followed her out and gazed out at the impressive view of what he knew must be Viridian Forest.

"So what's your name?" the girl asked. Red blinked and looked up at her. For a second, he had forgotten where he was. He was just feeling that much out of place. "Red. I'm Red." He told her. The girl gave him a perplexed look. "Red… that's a different name. I'm Marie. Nice to meet you." Marie said, offering her hand. Red took it and the two shook hands. Then they both turned their gazes to the horizon, admiring the view some more.

"Red, why are you here? Did you get lost in the forest? I've been watching you wander the mansion for a bit, and I still don't know why you're here." Marie said, starting to play with her curled, chocolate brown hair. Red swallowed hard. For some reason he didn't want to tell Marie why he was here, but he had to. "I… Team Rocket kidnapped me and they brought me here. The man named Dave Charleston… bought me." Red said nervously, stuttering here and there.

Marie suddenly looked down at him with wide eyes, absolutely horrified. "You're kidding… please tell me you're kidding." Marie said quietly, her voice just above a whisper. Red shook his head. He was not joking around by any means nor did he want to at a time like this. Marie took a deep breath. "Oh my Arceus, you poor thing… how old are you? Twelve?" Marie asked. At her reaction, Red found his throat was closed and dry and he could not speak. He simply held up all ten of his digits.

This only shocked Marie even more. "Ten years old… And I thought me being sixteen was young… Did Charleston tell you exactly what this place is or what he has planned for you?" Marie asked. Red shrugged his shoulders, and somehow found his voice. "He told me to ask around. He said something about me getting my first customer tonight, but I don't know what that means." Red told her.

Marie went silent. For endless minutes, she stared out into the distance, seeming to be lost in thought. Red only waited for her to say something, anything, to break the silence. "Red… do you know where babies come from?" Marie asked. Red gave her a quizzical look. What kind of question was that? "Yeah, they come from mommies. And baby Pokémon come from eggs." Red explained. Marie sighed drastically.

"Okay, do you know how the babies get inside the mommies?" Marie asked. Red had to stop and think about this one. But then he remembered what his mother had told him when he asked the exact same thing once. "Heaven gives babies to mommies all over the world, right?" Red asked. Marie just wanted to break down and cry. Here was the most innocent ten year old boy in existence, waiting to be ruined in this hell hole.

"Red… I'm about to tell you something that might scare you. This mansion is a brothel. A brothel is a place people, mainly men, go to when they want sex. Sex is how babies are made. Am I going too fast for you, or are you following?" Marie asked. Red shook his head. He still wanted to know what this 'sex' thing was. "Alright then. So men come here and have sex with the women. These men are customers. If you're getting a customer, that means… you will have sex too. With the men, not the women.

"You're not a woman, I know, but while you're here you'll end up being like us. And that's not a good thing. You don't want to be here, and you need to get out of here." Marie explained, crouching so that she and Red were eye-to-eye. Red only blinked. He didn't really want to be here to begin with, but now he had a good reason. "Okay, so while I'm here I have sex with men just like the women do, but… I still don't know what sex is. How does it make babies again?" Red asked.

Before Marie could start to answer Red's question, the bedroom door was opened and Charleston entered the room. "You educated yet, runt?" Charleston asked. Marie stood in front of Red as soon as Charleston began to approach. "Mr. Charleston, sir, don't sell him off! Please, he's just a little kid and he—" Marie started pleading with Charleston, but was forcefully silenced when Charleston slapped her across the face.

Red felt terror starting to rise in him as he caught a glimpse of the mark left behind on Marie's cheek and the tear trailing over it. Red pressed himself back against the railing of the balcony as Marie ran out of the room before Charleston could hit her again, and Red was left wide open. "Hey, no reason to be so scared. Nobody's going to hurt you as long as you don't act up. Just listen to what people tell you and you'll be fine." Charleston said.

Red did not trust the man's words one bit, but for the moment he felt that as long as he did not speak out then he would not be harmed. "Anyway, you got your first customer a lot more sooner than I thought you would. I hope you're ready to do business." Charleston said. Red still had no idea what he was supposed to be doing, but he couldn't really say anything against this for fear of being beaten. So instead of speaking at all, Red just nodded his head.

That was when Charleston stepped out of the way, and Red saw the stranger who stood behind him. If Red had thought he would never see someone more terrifying than Charleston, he had another thing coming. This man made Charleston look like a twig in muscle comparison and he had a scar over his left eye. "Well what are you waiting for?" Charleston snapped, startling Red. "You said you were ready, so strip."

Red blinked. He had to take his clothes off again? He felt extremely uncomfortable removing his clothing in front of anyone, especially in front of these two men, and the way the scarred man stared at Red as he took off his clothes unnerved him. A bit chilly from standing by the balcony naked where a breeze blew in, Red stared at Charleston, waiting for some sort of explanation. But Charleston gave him none. And Red was only more confused when the scarred man started taking off his own clothes.

-Meanwhile—

"You can't be serious…" Green muttered to himself, staring upward in awe. After the three Rockets who brought him to what he assumed was Team Rocket's hideout, they took Green out again. Apparently Green had to show them that he was capable of committing crime, and so they took him to the local store to steal an item. But in Celadon City, the local store was the number one super mart of Kanto with surveillance cameras and security guards.

"We're serious. You live in a city now, kid, you gotta be able to steal from places like this. Just go in, pocket something, and come out. Just find a blind spot and make sure no people can see you. Easy." A Rocket said. Green looked up at him in a demeaning way, and he gestured at the Rocket's chest. "We all have giant, red 'R's on our shirts and everyone knows who the hell Team Rocket is. You honestly expect me to go in there in this and not get followed around?" Green asked.

"Hey, we've all done it before. Trust me, no one ever suspects a thing. People are stupid. Now hurry up." Another Rocket said, pushing Green backward. Green gave them one last scowl before he turned and approached the building. He sighed, and entered. On the first floor, there was only one woman at the front counter who wasn't selling merchandise and there was a man at the back using the phone. Green noticed the woman paid no attention to him as he went passed her.

Over the next few floors, Green couldn't even walk right and would bump into people. For some reason he found himself too scared to even look around at what he could possibly steal. He had never done anything illegal nor did he ever want to do anything illegal. Of course, just stealing one little item wouldn't hurt anybody, right? But no, it was still wrong in Green's eyes. What if he got caught? He was only ten, would he face jail time? What would people think of him?

Green stopped in an aisle. All he had been doing was thinking of the worst case scenarios as he just kept going upstairs. He was already on the fourth floor. He needed to hurry and get this over with. Green looked at the shelves around him. There were Poké dolls and strange, pretty stones. Green figured the Rockets would find the stones of some value, and he looked over them. There were four different stones; scarlet, cerulean, lime green and pine green.

Green looked around, and saw that no one was paying attention to him. Taking advantage of the opportunity, he quickly pocketed one of each stone, looking around again and again. He saw now guards, no witnesses and no cameras. He was safe. After his work was complete, he fast walked down several flights of stairs and exited the building as fast as he could, not even trying to be casual. He nearly ran over to the three Rockets who waited for him under the shade the super mart provided.

"Well? How'd it go?" one Rocket asked. Green glanced around quickly before he pulled out all four of the stones. The Rockets took them and examined them, appearing rather pleased with the prospect. "Not bad, kid. These should fetch about 4000 Poké altogether. You can consider yourself a real member of Team Rocket now." One Rocket said, pocketing the scarlet and cerulean stones. Green wasn't too sure he was happy to be an 'official member' now.

-Meanwhile—

Red's whimper as he was thrown down onto the bed was stuck at the back of his throat, soundless from the makeshift gag of cloth stuffed in his mouth to silence any screaming he would do. As soon as the scarred man had removed his own clothing, Charleston gagged Red against his will and threw him down onto the bed before finally shutting the bedroom door. Before Red could sit up or remove the cloth, the scarred man was looming over him.

Red held his breath as he and the scarred man were locked in a stare. He had no idea what was going on or what the man was going to do to him, but he did not like the look of this situation. Either way, no matter what was about to happen to him, he was completely powerless and could do nothing to stop it. All he could do was stay quiet and hope that it didn't hurt. But that hope was shattered in the matter of seconds after the man grabbed Red and turned him over.

Before Red could even think to question the man's actions, he felt something being pushed into him. The pain came so fast and so great Red screamed to the top of his lungs as he felt a burning heat rush through his whole body that felt so hot and agonizing he almost thought he had been set on fire. His screams went unheard, as hardly a sound managed to escape through the cloth that gagged him. But he kept screaming regardless, unable to stop as he could only feel searing hurt inside of him.

Red could definitely feel his flesh being torn inside, and he could feel blood too. He would have thought he was dying if he could think of anything else other than begging for everything to stop. He thought the man would stop hurting him this way, but he just kept going. Red just wanted him to stop. Why wasn't he stopping? Why was he hurting Red? Why couldn't Red just stop feeling the pain or… die? The only thing that stopped was Red's screaming, as his lungs were too sore for him to even breathe properly. They felt almost as torn as he felt everywhere else.

Red had actually begun to slip away, his mind seemed to be fading. The agony was so overwhelming to Red that it seemed he was losing all feeling, like his body was reacting by numbing him to stop the pain. But it was too great, and it kept him from falling away as well. Eventually Red soon was more aware of his surroundings and found that he had been left alone in the room; neither Charleston nor the scarred man were there. Red hadn't even noticed them taking their leave; he still felt just as much in pain as he did while the scarred man was hurting him.

Red's hand shakily reached his face, and he slowly removed the rag in his mouth. His throat was dry as cotton and he could hardly breathe still. But he still felt relief that the two men were gone. But he didn't want to be alone. He wished that Marie would come in and comfort him. He wished his mother were here to take the pain away. He wished Green was here to just be there; his presence alone made Red feel safe somehow.

Either way, Red just didn't want to be alone in here. But no one would come in to console him or help him. He would stay alone until he could get up again, which he did not plan on doing. Red hoped he could just sleep the pain off. Red tried to relax, and soon he started drifting off, but he was awakened by a chilling wind. Red opened his eyes and saw the balcony doors were still wide open, letting in a cold draft.

Where were Red's clothes? Still on the floor near the doors where he had stripped down. Red was about to go and get his clothing, but he winced as soon as he moved his leg. There was no way he could be able to move, lying still was the only way to somewhat numb the pain. But it was freezing. Red slowly reached out for the edge of the blanket underneath him and pulled it over him. It couldn't cover his back, but he was too sore to roll over or move. He would have to lie like this for the time being.

-Later—

After the theft of the strange stones, Green and the Rockets had headed back to the hideout. Green was utterly confused when the Rockets merely handed the stones over to their boss as soon as they arrived. He was the one who stole the stones, why were they giving them to the Boss without so much as expecting compensation? Did everyone here just do everything in their power to kiss the Boss' shoes? Green found it stupid and sickening. Anything he would do, he planned to do it for himself and no one else.

Green didn't even receive a word of thanks or praise for stealing the stones. They were simply handed over to the Boss and that was that. He didn't even seem to care for the stones, he was more preoccupied with the papers on his desk. After the stones had been given to the Boss, the Rockets told Green that he was free for the rest of the day. Green decided to take advantage of his 'free time' and explored the hideout.

Green had already come to the conclusion that he would not be leaving Team Rocket any time soon. He was only a child, with no more than a powerless Zubat that hardly knew him to defend him. And if he tried to escape, Team Rocket would no doubt find him, and he doubt they would just let him come back without consequence. So for the time being, however long it would take, Green would watch and wait. He would observe Team Rocket from the inside and wait for an opening to escape unscathed.

But for today, Green would simply wander the corridors of their hideout and memorize the layout of the building. He knew that it was in Celadon City, under the Game Corner. He also knew that a secret switch behind a poster had to be used in order to access the hideout. He also knew that the elevator could not be used to reach the Boss. Oh, another thing he should find out is what the hell the Boss' name even was.

It seemed Green was currently on the third floor down, where the bedrooms were. There was also this strange maze with floor tiles that would hurl you in any direction if you weren't careful enough, but Green had already figured out how to get through it. Other than that there was one small room with a few computers. The third floor did not have much else, and there were few Rockets on this floor. Green went upstairs to the second floor down.

At the top of the stairs he already saw and even larger tile maze than the one downstairs. It seemed this one was really meant to keep people out. Other than that there were two staircases heading upstairs. Green took the stair case closest to the one he just came from. On the first floor down, it was the busiest. More Rockets were in the halls and the rooms than on the floors below. There was no maze, and the large rooms served as offices and meeting rooms.

Finding nothing of interest, Green glanced over to the final stair case leading up into the Game Corner. Would he even be allowed in there? It was a casino, after all. But more than that, would a Rocket come to retrieve him if he left without permission? He certainly wasn't just going to ask if he could leave. He decided to throw away the idea altogether and stay indoors. With the first three floors explored, Green went over to the elevator.

He quickly found out why the Rockets who brought him here didn't use the elevator. Some sort of key was required to access it. Who would have a key? How long would it take before Green could get a key himself? Well, he would just have to take the stairs for now. Green went down a few flights of stairs until there were no more stair cases heading down, and he was on the fourth floor again. He passed the Boss' office and looked around.

There were fewer rooms down here, but they seemed more important. The rooms were larger, more elaborate offices and there was a computer lab of sorts. There were no ordinary low-ranked Rockets roaming the corridors. In fact, the floor seemed empty. Green figured only the executives and the Boss of Team Rocket were permitted on this floor for any reason. He would have to aim to reach this level if he wanted to be able to escape Team Rocket scott-free.

Green was about to go back upstairs when he heard some muffled yelling, and he turned around. The corridor was silent. He was too curious to simply go back upstairs without investigating. He ended up heading to the last door at the end of the corridor, and he opened the door a crack to observe what was going on inside. And he was a bit surprised by what he saw. There were three people tied to chairs in the middle of the dimly lit room; two men and one woman. One man was unconscious and bruised the most, but the other two did not look much better.

There was not much else in the room other than a table at the back with various objects laid out over it. Green was about to enter the room when he saw someone appear from against the wall beside the door originally out of his sight, startling him. Green stood still and silent as he watched the man head to the back table, and he picked up one of the objects there. Green drew a sharp intake of breath when he saw that the object was a rather large knife.

The man, knife in hand, approached the woman tied to the chair. The woman stared down at her lap, and the man came up behind her. He pulled her hair down hard to force her to look up at the ceiling, and she cried out. The man put the knife to her throat. Green noticed she had bruises on her neck and she already had scars on her face. The woman seemed to be hyperventilating as the man cut a thin line across her throat, just barely breaking the skin and hardly bleeding.

When the line reached from one side of her neck to the other, the man simply dropped the knife to the floor. He began caressing the wound with his thumb. "This is your last chance. If you don't tell me where you hid those papers, I will dig into your throat with my bare hands and tear it open. And I will force these two to watch." The man said menacingly, digging his thumbnail into the cut. The woman shook and hissed, but she did not speak.

Green was absolutely terrified. He didn't want to see something so gruesome happen to this woman, no matter what she had done wrong, but he couldn't bring himself to leave either. He looked over to the men who were tied and saw that while one was unconscious, the other was wide awake and staring right at him. Green was about to run away, but the man spoke and he found himself frozen to the spot.

"Is Team Rocket resorting to child soldiers or something? How sickeningly low of you." The man said. The one who had his hand on the woman's neck looked over to where the man tied up was looking, and soon all eyes were on Green as he peered in. He decided now was a good time to take his leave. Green shut the door and bolted for the stairs, only to be blocked by a man coming down the stairs. Green saw that his uniform was different. Actually, it was like the man in that room back there.

"You shouldn't be down here without parental guidance." The man said as a joke, but appearing far too serious for his words. Green was going to run around him, but a hand grabbed the collar of his Rocket uniform shirt and he was held in place. Green nervously looked up at the man who held him. He had blood stained on his face and his eyes were cold and unforgiving. "I-I got lost!" Green insisted, holding his hands up as if in surrender.

"I heard about you. Green Oak, the orphan, Professor Oak's grandson. Newest and youngest Team Rocket recruit." The man who just came down the stairs said. Green stared up at him. How the hell did everyone know who he was? The man nodded his head at the man who held Green, and they both led him to the back room where those three people were. It was the last place Green wanted to be right now. He automatically assumed that he would be tied up and tortured as well.

But he wasn't. As soon as they were in, the door was closed and the two men seemed to forget Green was even there. They just continued about their business, cutting, beating and burning the two victims who somehow stayed conscious. The two Rocket executives, or at least that's who Green assumed they were, were apparently looking for some papers that these three had hid away somewhere and refused to give away the location as to where.

Eventually a bucket of cold water was poured on the third victim to awake him, and he was treated the same way as the Rockets only demanded answers. Green was absolutely horrified the whole time. Never had he ever witnessed so much yelling and threatening and abuse. He never realized that Team Rocket was like this, either. He never imagined anyone was like this. Of course Green was shocked enough that Team Rocket had nearly killed them and sold Red to someone, but this was a whole new level of evil.

After what felt like hours, the two executives seemed to give up. They left the room, and Green followed. One executive locked the door behind him, which only confused Green. "How long are they staying in there?" he asked. The executives didn't so much as glance at him. "As long as they need to be. Another night without food or water should make them crack." One executive said. Green swallowed hard. Another night? How long have those three been without anything to eat?

"You want to know why we made you watch what we did to those three?" one executive asked as Green followed them down the corridor. Green shook his head. He had no idea why they had done that. There didn't seem to be a reason at all, it looked like aimless violence. "It was just to give you an idea of what Team Rocket is capable of. Consider it a lesson: if you are disloyal to Team Rocket, you probably won't see the light of day again." The executive said.

Green nodded his head. He never wanted to end up like those three. He never wanted to be a victim. He didn't want to get hurt like that, he didn't want his life to be threatened. Taking the executive's words to heart, Green began to develop a new fear within him. He couldn't act up or disobey anyone unless he wanted to get hurt. He had to play nice to be safe. After today, Green quickly found out the world wasn't what he had ever expected at all. It was a world where you have to either be invisible or give everything away to survive.

-Meanwhile-

"I'm so, so sorry…" Marie sobbed, sitting next to Red on the bed. After a long time, Red had awakened on the bed to Marie sitting next to him and offering a bottle of water. After Marie helped him drink down the entire bottle, she started apologizing over and over again how she was a coward and shouldn't have left Red alone, how she should have done something, how she should have told Red about what would happen to him sooner.

Red only raised a hand and told her to stop apologizing, that nothing was her fault. It wasn't her fault for what happened to Red, and she couldn't have done anything to stop it. And she had every right to leave after Charleston had struck her. Red didn't think he could have stood to see Marie get hurt more than that, and not even her make up could hide the purple mark that had formed on her face from being hit. Red forgave her completely.

"I think you're the only person I can trust here." Red said weakly as a way to console her. It seemed to do the trick, because she stopped crying. But Red truly meant what he said: Marie was the only person he trusted in the mansion. Marie brought up some food and more water for Red, knowing just how much pain he must be in. "The first time is always the worst, and it'll hurt the next few times too. But eventually it won't hurt much, and you might even start liking it." Marie said.

There was something that gave Red mixed feelings. He knew for certain how much he was hurting, but liking it? Liking what had just happened to him? And hold on, he still didn't even know what 'it' was. "What just happened, anyway? Charleston said that I had my first customer, but I don't understand…" Red asked. Marie only blinked at him. She was hoping Red would understand the concept of why he was here, as she really felt awkward explaining it.

"Well Red… I told you all about customers and how you have sex with your customers. Do you remember that?" Marie asked. Red nodded his head. He remembered the conversation they had on the balcony earlier. "Well, what just happened to you… that man was a customer, and he just had sex with you. What he did to you was sex. And you have to do that with every customer you get." Marie said. Red stared up at her in horror. He had to get hurt again and again?

"N-no, I won't do that again. I'm not doing that ever again, it hurts too much…" Red whispered, on the verge of tears. Marie bit her lip. There wasn't much else she could say or do. Red rubbed his eyes. "I… I'm leaving. I have to get out of here. We're in Viridian Forest, right? Well that's right near Viridian City, which is near my home town…" Red started, stuttering and mumbling. Red sat up and winced. He was still sore, but he could at least move.

"Red, I don't think trying to leave is a good idea. I mean, I don't want you to stay here like I have to, but leaving this place once you're in is like trying to retrieve a glass of fresh water after pouring it into the ocean." Marie said. Red threw the blanket off of him, no longer uncomfortable about his nakedness, not even in front of Marie. "I don't care, I'm getting out of here. I need to go home and get help. My best friend is still in the hands of Team Rocket and I need to save him…" Red said, shakily standing up.

Marie only sighed. She didn't really know what to say at this point. Red wanted to escape this place, and she couldn't really blame him. But she knew what the consequences of attempted escape were; she had tried to run away after her first time too. "Red… I can't help you try to escape, but I can tell you this: run. Keep running and never look back for anything. Once you're gone, you need to stay gone. If you try to escape, you can't get caught or even slow down. Otherwise you'll face something worse than just staying here." Marie told him.

Red was already pulling his jacket on when she finished speaking. By instinct he looked around the floor, looking for one last garment. It was only just then did he realize his hat was missing. When was the last time he had seen it? He didn't remember dropping it… "Are you looking for something?" Marie asked. Red blinked, and nodded his head. "Have you seen… a rope?" Red asked. His hat wasn't his number one priority right now.

Marie gave him a perplexed look, but she went over to the closet and took out a rope. "There's rope in every closet in the building. There are other unmentionable things as well, so don't go looking into one…" Marie said, her cheeks turning pink. Red took the rope from her and thanked her before going out onto the balcony. Marie followed him out there, and watched in surprise as Red was already tying double knots around the balcony railing.

"You mean you're going to try and escape now? When it's not even all that dark out?" Marie asked. Red looked out at the horizon and saw how late it was getting. The sun was setting somewhere and the sky was a canvas of pink and orange mixed in with golden clouds. How long had he slept? "I need to go now. I can't stay for another minute. If I'm not back, then you'll know I've made it out." Red said, dropping the untied end of the rope down and watching to see how close to the ground it was.

If Marie didn't see Red again, she would highly doubt Red made it anywhere alright. But she wouldn't stop him now. She sincerely hoped that Red made it out of this hell perfectly fine. "Just be careful. And get to a hospital as soon as you can, you're probably torn up." Marie said. Red was a bit confused when she said 'torn up', but he didn't question her. Red thanked Marie before he climbed down the rope and made it safely on the ground.

The second his feet touched the ground, he bolted for the tree line into the forest. After that, it was all about navigation. Should he stick to the trees to limit his chances of being found? Surely he would get lost, and it was getting dark. But if he stayed to the paths, wouldn't he be found? Red decided to try for the paths anyway. His main concern was getting out as soon as possible. Besides, how long would it take for anyone but Marie to know that he was gone?

Red broke through the tree line and headed out onto a path, and kept running. He started breathing heavily, having a hard time keeping in motion as his lower area was getting irritated. Every signal in his brain had begun telling him to stop, but his feet kept moving. Suddenly his body weighed as much as lead, and Red was drenched in sweat. He stopped to take a breather. Who knew running would be so difficult after having sex?

Red only stopped for a few moments before he started walking. There was no way he could run now. Soon it had gotten dark out, and the moon was hidden somewhere in the black sky that showed no stars tonight. Red was feeling lost and scared, but that fear was short-lived as a new hope lit up like a candle when Red saw the lights of Viridian City in the distance. Red was about to run for it when he was suddenly grabbed by the collar of his jacket.

Red was turned around and he was now face-to-face with a very angry-looking Dave Charleston. "Where the fuck do you think you're going, little shit?" Charleston growled, grabbing Red by the throat. Red's hands clutched at Charleston's wrists as he breathlessly tried to plead for him to let go. Holding him up by the throat, Charleston swung a fist and struck Red square in the jaw. Red couldn't cry out in pain or call for help, as he couldn't breathe. Eventually with the lack of oxygen and Charleston's constant punching, Red started seeing dots and began slipping into darkness.


	3. Chapter 3

Green was awakened when he heard everyone else getting up. He yawned, sat up and rubbed his eyes. All the Rockets who shared the same room with him were already dressed and leaving. Green checked his watch. It was only six o'clock in the morning, why was everyone waking up? Green grabbed his uniform that was neatly folded at the end of his bed and he quickly slipped it over his own clothes, rolling up the pant legs and tucking in the shirt.

"Hurry up and get out of bed, rookie." Someone said, startling Green. He thought everyone else had left, but there was one Rocket remaining, who appeared to be waiting for him as he leaned against the wall with his arms folded. Green climbed down from his top bunk, checking at the last second to make sure he had his Zubat in pocket. "Do we always wake up so early?" Green asked, suppressing another yawn.

"The Game Corner opens at seven. We all need to be awake and out of here by then. You'll probably have to wake up earlier in the future. You're Green, right?" the Rocket asked. Green nodded his head, and finally opened his eyes enough to actually get a good look at the Rocket. He was clearly younger than most of the Rockets around here, in his late teens. He wore the same size uniform Green did, the smallest size. He fit in it much better than Green did.

"Well my name is Les, but from today on, you're calling me 'boss'. Understood?" the Rocket asked. Green gave him a quizzical look. "Why should I call you 'boss'?" Green asked, shoving his hands in his pockets and staring up at Les. The Rocket went over to Green's bunk and took the uniform hat down from it before dropping it on Green's head. "You're gonna call me 'boss' because that's who I am. You were assigned to be my lackey. So you have to do whatever I say. Now follow me." Les said, leaving the room.

Green huffed and tossed the uniform hat back onto his bunk, trying to fix his hair as he followed Les out of the room. The two of them were almost immediately stopped by three older Rockets in the corridor. "Have to teach the rookie how to steal from the cookie jar, _Lesley?_" one Rocket teased, pushing Les back a bit. Les said nothing and stared the three Rockets down. Green only stood beside him and watched the scenario unfold.

"Doesn't make much sense, you're still a newbie here yourself. But I guess you two are perfect for each other; you can both cry in a corner and go on about how you lost your parents." Another Rocket said, and they all started laughing. Green looked up at Les. He didn't have parents either? Les wasn't about to just stand there and take the insults. He punched one Rocket square in the jaw, sending him reeling back.

In a split second, an all-out fist fight had started. Three against one. Les was almost immediately pummelled, lying in a fetal position as the three older Rockets started kicking him. Green pressed back against the wall and watched in horror. These guys were all part of the same criminal organization, why were they doing this to each other?

The three Rockets stopped at last and walked away, laughing and carrying on. Green went over to Les, who was bruised and had a bloody nose. Green didn't need to ask if he was alright, as he stood up shakily and wiped the blood off his face with a gloved hand. "I thought all you Rockets were dumb and evil, but still stood together or something as a team. Why'd you guys get in a fight?" Green asked as Les straightened up.

"Most of us don't get in fights like that unless it's with a traitor or something. I just sort of have something personal with those three. It's none of your business, though, so don't ask me anything about it. Anyway, so in case you haven't figured it out, you're supposed to tag along with me for a while. I don't usually get assigned anything, so most of the time I just get to do whatever I want." Les explained. Green was glad to hear this. Maybe he could convince Les to do what he wanted to do.

"So what are we doing today?" Green asked him. They were already going up a flight of stairs. "Well I had planned on stealing something good to get a few bucks for myself. I guess you would have to get a bit of payment if you help." Les said. The two of them reached the Game Corner floor and were out the doors. It was a dark morning, the sun hidden by a layer of clouds.

"I thought all the money you guys get goes to the Boss?" Green asked. Les shrugged his shoulders and stopped walking. "Well," Les started, "It's supposed to. I mean, we get free food and bedding, plus uniform. But lots of us keep bits of money for ourselves and give most of it to the Boss. You see, you want to keep money for yourself, but if the Boss isn't making anything off of you then he'll probably cut you loose and you'll either get black listed or get labelled as a traitor. Plus if you bring in lots of money, you stay on the Boss' good side." Les said, taking out a cell phone.

"What does black listed mean? What happens if you're considered to be a traitor?" Green asked, looking around. No one else seemed to be awake yet in Celadon City. "If you're black listed, you can't join Team Rocket again. And every Rocket you come in contact with will probably want to battle you for your money, and maybe more. If you're a traitor, however… you might not end up seeing the light of day when the executives are done with you." Les said, fiddling with his phone.

Green swallowed hard, remembering what that executive had been doing to those three people yesterday. He took that as a lesson to never be disloyal to Team Rocket. As for getting black listed, he probably wouldn't mind that. But how could he get black listed without being considered a traitor? "Okay, I think I know what we're doing. Ever been to Cerulean City?" Les asked. Green shook his head. He had only ever been to Pallet Town and Viridian City.

"Well they've got a bike shop. The bikes they sell up there go for more money than you can have, and that's because they're made of these materials that are super rare and have to be imported from the other side of the world. Stupid use for that stuff, making it into bikes, but it'll be easy to steal. We just go in, take a bike, and get out. If someone chases us, we can just ride away. Sounds simple enough." Les said. Green didn't like this idea at all. Stealing anything didn't really catch his interest, but a bike? Even if it was worth a lot, it just seemed so… lame.

"What if we need to hide? How are we going to hide a bicycle?" Green asked. Les already started walking to the east. "They're folding bikes. We can just hide them under our shirts." Les said. Green still didn't like the idea. He stood in front of Les and stopped him. "Can't we do something else?" Green asked. Les walked around him, and kept on walking. Green caught up with him and walked beside him.

"Look kid, I already told you, we do whatever I want. I say I want to steal a bike, so that's what we're doing." Les stated. Green sighed in annoyance. He tried to think of how he could convince Les to do something else, but few ideas came to mind. "Wait, what if we… steal something better?" Green asked. Les stopped walking and turned to face him. Green looked up at him, waiting for a reply.

"…What exactly did you have in mind?" Les asked with genuine curiosity. In truth, Green had nothing in mind. He quickly tried to come up with some idea. "Um… how about something worth even more than a bike, but something that no one will miss or look for?" Green asked. Les seemed very interested by this suggestion, and Green had his full attention now. "Like what?" Les asked.

"Uh, like… um… like something both rare and valuable, but something we could get… like a fossil?" Green suggested dryly. He was already mentally cursing himself for having such a stupid idea, but Les didn't seem to dislike the idea at all. In fact, he was actually considering it. "A fossil… there are hardly fossils anymore, I don't think. I know there's plenty at Mt. Moon, and the museum in Pewter City would probably buy them… Alright, let's go get some fossils." Les said.

-Meanwhile-

When Red slowly came to, he first noticed how dry his mouth and throat were. That was because he was gagged with a rag yet again. Red was about to rub his eyes before he opened them, only to find he couldn't move his hands. He opened his eyes and realized that he was lying face-down on a bed with his wrists and ankles restrained. He looked up and found that his wrists were bound to the bed posts. Red was also naked. The last thing he remembered was…

"I thought you might've been dead." A certain someone said, and Red tensed. He looked over as well as he could and tried to figure out exactly where he was. He knew he must have been in the brothel, but in what room, and where was the nearest escape route? Red knew that he was clearly in a bedroom, but he only saw the bathroom, as he could not turn his head any further. He also knew that Dave Charleston was somewhere in the room out of his view.

Red felt someone else get on the bed behind him, most likely Charleston. Red tightened his muscles and braced himself for the worst. Charleston might start beating on him again. But no pain came to Red. It seemed that Charleston was just looming over him, still and silent. Just when Red was beginning to relax, Charleston held a knife in front of Red's face for a brief moment, just to show him that he had it.

Red winced as Charleston pulled his head back by his hair, leaving his neck exposed. Red's eyes widened in fear when Charleston brought the knife to his throat. Charleston, keeping the blade to Red's neck, leaned in close. "Next time you try to run again, you're dead, little shit. Do you hear me? Or should I just save myself some trouble and get rid of you now?" Charleston hissed in his ear. Red shook his head, whimpering as tears made their way down his face.

Red was more than relieved when Charleston took the knife away from his throat and released his grip on his hair. Red let his face dig into the pillow under him as he tried to mentally calm his pounding heart. But the feeling of soothing, sweet relief was short lived. Red felt the tip of the knife on the back of his neck, and he tensed again. "Don't move, runt." Charleston said sternly.

The knife didn't even break Red's skin, it was just there. Charleston slowly dragged the blade gently against Red's skin with a feather-like touch, not leaving behind a single scratch as it made its way. Red shuddered slightly but tried to contain himself. The knife felt cold as it trailed down through Red's shoulder blades and the small of his back, finally stopping just above his rear.

Red held his breath. Time slowed in the room. Red lay there, still as stone. Charleston did not move the knife; he merely held it in the same spot. No one made a sound. Red did not whimper or beg. Charleston did not make threats or even speak. But within half a second, the silence was shattered by Red's muffled screaming as Charleston finally cut into Red.

Red started crying again in agony as the knife tore at his flesh. Charleston didn't merely cut Red; he dragged the blade through his skin. He was carving him. After several long, burning moments, Charleston removed the bloody knife. Red didn't stop crying, but his screaming had ceased for the moment. But he only screamed again when Charleston brought the knife upon him again, cutting through Red the same way.

Soon Charleston pulled the knife away, and he did not cut Red again. He was finished. "Just something to remind you who your boss is." Charleston said, getting up off the bed and leaving the room through a door that Red could not see. In the silence of the room, Red felt light-headed. He decided to take advantage of the momentary solitude, and he began drifting off into sleep, unaware that the initials 'DC' were now carved into his lower back.

-Meanwhile-

"Now where do we start?" Les asked as he and Green entered the cave of Mt. Moon. The cave was dark, but the two could still see where they were going, and also saw the Zubats flying around and the Geodudes lurking on the ground. Green pointed down one narrow tunnel. "It looks promising down there." He suggested. Without hesitation, Les lead Green down the narrow tunnel.

Suddenly Les stopped, and he reached a hand into his pocket. He pulled something out, and handed it to Green. "A Pokéball?" Green asked. Les nodded his head, and they kept walking. "You should catch a Pokémon while you're here. You know, something other than a Zubat?" Les suggested. Green thanked him for the Pokéball. He was already thinking about catching another Pokémon other than Zubat. He should expand his team if he planned on getting anywhere.

As they continued down the tunnel, Green tried to think of what Pokémon he should catch. He knew there were Zubats and Geodudes around. He could catch a Geodude, that was a rock type. He'd have an advantage over most Rockets who have Zubats, then. What other Pokémon were available? There was Clefairy, which was pretty popular, but it didn't really pique Green's interest.

The tunnel broke into a larger cavern, which was a dead end. However, it was exactly what they had been looking for. All over the walls were various Pokémon fossils. It was a jackpot. "You're a genius, kid! Alright, let's dig a few of these out and take them to the museum in Pewter City." Les said, going up to one of the fossils on the wall. Suddenly Les was tackled to the ground by a figure that had lunged from the darkness, and it tried to pin Les down. Green stood back as Les defended himself and managed to pin whoever was on top below him.

"These are MY fossils! I found this cave first, beat it!" someone said. Les stood up, and picked up the figure by the collar of their shirt. Green saw who it was now; some nerd excavating for fossils. "Too bad, runt. These fossils belong to Team Rocket now. Hey, is that a pile you dug up yourself already? That's great, we'll be taking those. Thanks for your service, now beat it." Les said, tossing the nerd to the cave floor.

He stood up, and sent out his Grimer. "If you want my fossils, battle me for them!" he said. Les laughed, and sent out a Cubone. Green watched as a battle ensued. Les' Cubone was clearly strong, as it had beaten the nerd's Grimer with a single Bone Club. After Grimer came Koffing, which was beaten just as easily. Green could hear the nerd sigh as he reluctantly sent out a Voltorb, which didn't last a second. After the battle, the nerd ran away from the cavern.

"Alright, let's grab a few fossils and get out of here." Les said, going over to a pile of fossils that the nerd had managed to dig out. Green could only carry two himself, as the fossils were very large and hard to hold. With the fossils in hand, Green and Les headed for the other exit of Mt. Moon, which would lead to Pewter City. They were nearly through the caves when the ground started rumbling, and they stopped. Then it went still.

"You felt that, right?" Les asked, turning to face Green as he glanced all around. Green nodded his head as he also glanced around. What the heck was that? Was it a miniature earthquake? Green went tense when he felt rumbling underneath him, deep in the ground below. Green looked at Les in horror, and Les wore the same expression. They both split and ran in opposite directions as the ground bulged, and something exploded out from beneath, sending debris everywhere.

Green dropped his fossils as he fell to the cave floor, and he looked up to see an Onix looming over him. Green backed away, taking out two Pokéballs; one with Zubat, the other empty. Suddenly a bone was chucked at the back of Onix' head, and it turned around. Les already had his Cubone sent out and was battling the Onix. "Green, there's no way your Zubat can defend you against this thing! Take the fossils and run, I'll catch up later!" Les called.

Green wouldn't run away like a little pussy, he was way cooler than that. Besides, Onix was already fairly weakened and about to collapse. Rather than letting Les finish it off, Green took advantage of the moment and threw his empty Pokéball as far and hard as he could. It hit the Onix directly, and it was forced within the Pokéball. It dropped to the cave floor, shook a few times, and was still. Green went over and picked up the Pokéball. He had just caught his first Pokémon: an Onix.

"You know, technically that one should've been mine." Les said, returning Cubone to its Pokéball before he picked up the fossils he had dropped. Green shrugged his shoulders and put the Pokéballs in his pockets. He went to pick up his two fossils. "Still, nice catch. Now you've got a Pokemon really worth training. You could probably kick most people's asses with that Onix alone." Les said, fumbling with the fossils before straightening up. Green chuckled as he followed after Les, fossils in hand.

-Later -

Red stared at himself in the bathroom mirror, still fully naked. He was bruised badly all over from Charleston beating on him when he tried to run away, and his new scar hadn't been cleaned yet. Red sighed with exhaustion and relief. After all that had happened to him so far in this mansion, he seemed to understand a few things. For one thing, he knew about sex. He knew that men wanted to have sex with him and would pay to do so. Red never felt the urge to have sex with anyone, but maybe he had to be of a certain age?

Either way, he knew what was going on now. And he figured something else out, too. He figured out that most men wanted to have sex with women because they were pretty. That's why so many women here wear make up all the time. And apparently men found Red pretty somehow. But now, beaten to a pulp, Red was not pretty. No man would want to have sex with him for a long time. And that was good for Red.

Red jumped when the bathroom door was slammed open, and Charleston stood in the doorway, sighing with both annoyance and relief. "I thought you ran again. I would've killed you if you did." Charleston said, offering Red a small plastic bag with a couple of ice cubes. Red hesitantly accepted the bag of ice and held it to his face. He didn't even bother trying to cover himself up; Charleston has seen him naked more than enough times for it to be relevant.

"I should've got you in the gut instead of the face, or at least somewhere your bruises wouldn't be seen so much. Oh well, just get rid of them as soon as you can, you've got more customers tonight." Charleston said, setting down some folded clothing on the bathroom counter. The new outfit was not Red's. The crimson-eyed boy removed the ice from his face and stared at Charleston. He didn't want customers. But he couldn't say it flat-out in front of him.

"Put that damn ice back on your face. I think it's time you started getting customers yourself like everyone else here does. Here's how it works: you make yourself look attractive to get customers. You give them a good time, and they pay you. I expect at least 5000 Poké from you tonight. If you don't meet the quota, then it'll just mean hell for you." Charleston informed Red before leaving the bathroom. Red, horrified, put the ice back to his face.

Red had to earn 5000 Poké a night? How was he supposed to do that? How much is he supposed to charge per customer? How much would a customer even be willing to pay? If Red asked for 1000 Poké, then he'd have to have five customers. What if he asked for 1500? Red sighed. Perhaps this would be much easier as he got used to doing it. Even if it hurts, it can't hurt every time, right? Hey, maybe he would come to enjoy it someday.

_Someday? _Exactly how long did Red plan on staying here? Well, he certainly wouldn't be able to escape anytime soon, now that Charleston was no doubt keeping a close eye on him. For now, Red would just have to go with the flow. Red decided that he would just do as he was told for now, and he went to get dressed. But looking at the outfit he was given, he was certain that they were the wrong garments.

The top was a white, paper-thin tank top with spaghetti straps that fit too snugly on him. Next was a pair of denim shorts that were shorter than his boxers. Speaking of which, why wasn't he given any underwear? The tight shorts were very uncomfortable on him. But the worst part was the shoes. There was no way in hell the shoes he had been given were for boys. They were these bare, scarlet sandals with short but narrow heels on them.

Regardless, Red put the shoes on. Odd enough, they fit. And he actually managed to walk in them. Red looked at himself in the mirror again, and he swallowed hard. His current outfit was rather revealing, and he might as well not be wearing anything at all. Red left the bathroom and went into the bedroom where Charleston still sat at a table, smoking a cigar. He said nothing as he gestured for Red to leave.

Red left the bedroom and went out into the corridor. He was shocked to find that it was already dark outside. Clearly Red must have slept the day away before having woken up just minutes ago with his hands unbound. Red glanced down the corridor and saw one of the women who lived here talking with a man. It was only moments before they went into a bedroom. Red quickly realized that the man was the woman's customer. Red had to go find a customer himself. Straightening up, Red walked down the corridor in search of a man that wasn't taken.

-Meanwhile-

"Promotion, here we come…" Les sighed with satisfaction as he and Green wandered the corridors of Team Rocket's hideout under the Celadon Game Corner, pockets full of cash. They had brought the five fossils they had found to the museum in Pewter City, and the curator was amazed. They had found (stolen) two Omanyte fossils, a Kabuto fossil, an Omastar fossil and a Kabutops fossil. Apparent they were 'complete sets', and they were given 100 000 Poké on the spot for the fossils.

Green and Les accepted the money without hesitation, and immediately headed for Celadon City afterwards. They were now in front of the Boss' office, but were stopped by two Rockets who stood outside. "A couple of rookies can't just wander in to see the Boss without reason. Why are you here?" one Rocket asked. Les only had to flash about 6000 Poké in front of them before the Rockets let them pass without hesitation.

Their boss, Giovanni, didn't even glance at them as he was typing something on his laptop. To get his attention, Les and Green merely emptied their pockets and dumped their cash on the desk. Les only smirked when he saw how shocked their boss was to see a couple of kids bring in so much money. "How in the world did you get all of this money?" Giovanni asked, finally giving them some attention.

"Well Boss, Green and I went to Mt. Moon and found a few fossils there. We took them to the museum in Pewter City and sold them for 75 000 Poké. Apparently fossils are worth a lot of money." Les explained. Green gave him a quizzical look. Only 75 000? Green thought they had to empty their pockets completely and fork over all of their cash, but clearly Les held back quite a bit for himself. "Fossils? Interesting… You may go now." Giovanni said, waving them away.

"Sir, hold on… don't you think we deserve something for getting all of this?" Les asked. Giovanni only chuckled, and he started counting money. "I'm sure the money you're hiding in your pockets will do just fine as compensation. You may leave now." Giovanni said. Shocked, Les left the room first before he said anything he would regret, and Green followed him out of the room.

"How did he know…?" Les muttered to himself as he and Green went down the corridor until they made it to the stairs. On the third floor, they both went to their bunk room, as it was getting late. Green said nothing as he slipped out of his uniform, still wearing his own clothing underneath. Green turned around and faced Les, who was offering him a rather large wad of cash. Green accepted it, and looked at him, perplexed.

"Hey, you helped get the fossils, so you can have that. It's only 10 000 Poké, but it's still something. I'd tell you to save it, but it's hard to hide money around here without it getting taken. And I doubt a bank would let you open an account, what with you being a criminal and all." Les said. Green blinked, and he supressed a smile. "Thanks." He said, tearing his mattress open and hiding the money within. Les only waved him off before climbing up onto his own bunk bed.

-Later-

Red dropped a large wad of cash onto Charleston's desk as he smoked a cigar and played some card game with another man, who was a stranger to Red. Charleston picked up the cash and started counting it. "I didn't think you'd actually go and work tonight. Not bad at all, but I'm surprised you're even able to walk. Let's see… 5250 Poké. Pretty good for your first night. Here." Charleston said, offering Red a small fraction of the money he had made.

Red snatched the small amount of cash out of Charleston's hands. "I can keep some of the money I make?" Red asked. Charleston dabbed his cigar in an ash tray and laid down his cards. "Well no shit. But it depends on how much you make. So if you want a real profit, get way more customers than you did tonight. Anyway, that's enough for tonight. Go get some sleep. You can use the room at the end of the hall out there, it's vacant." Charleston said, puffing his Cigar.

Red eagerly left the room. It certainly was a wonder that he could even walk; he has never been in more pain in his life. Well, the first time he did it with that scarred man was much worse, of course, but tonight wasn't so peachy itself. There were five men, all in a row. But surprisingly, they didn't hurt him as much. Maybe he really was getting used to this sort of thing?

Red entered the bedroom at the end of the hallway, and he immediately dove for the bed, landing on top. Without even bothering to close the door or get under the covers, Red just fell asleep, forgetting all about his troubles and his soreness. He wasn't sure how, but for some reason he slept very peacefully that night. It would be the most peaceful night he would have for years to come.


	4. Chapter 4

"Stop those Rockets! They stole my Pokémon! Someone please stop them!" the famous inventor and Pokémaniac named Bill cried out, running over the Nugget Bridge and into Cerulean City. About twenty feet ahead of him were two young Rockets, the older one holding three Pokéballs in his arms and the other holding an egg. By the time they ran past the PokéCentre, a few officers on motorcycles were already on their tails and catching up quickly.

The Rocket with the Pokéballs took out a fourth, and sent out an Aerodactyl. He jumped onto Aerodactyl's back and was airborne, looking down at his accomplice, running fast and hard as he was beginning to tire out and the cops were swiftly catching up with him. He couldn't take out a Pokémon because he had to hold the egg with both arms. "Drop it!" his partner on the Aerodactyl called, "Drop the egg! It's not worth it; we've already made a big haul!"

But he only held the egg tighter as his lungs grew sore. His partner growled in frustration and threw down another Pokéball, sending out a Marowak. The bone-wielding Pokémon stopped the officers in their tracks and kept them busy while the Rocket with the egg stopped running, put the egg down for a moment, and sent out his Crobat. He picked up the egg again and let his Crobat, strong from years of carrying its trainer all over, picked him up by the collar of his Team Rocket uniform shirt with its teeth.

Once he saw his partner was in the air as well, the Rocket on the Aerodactyl returned his Marowak to its Pokéball and took off, and the Rocket with the Crobat followed. When the lights of Cerulean City in the glow of the evening were in the distance, the two Rockets relaxed a little and finally spoke. "You were nearly a goner back there, you know." The Rocket on the Aerodactyl said, sighing in relief and annoyance.

"Oh please, I never get caught and you know it, _Lesley._" the Rocket with the egg said teasingly, shrugging his shoulders. Les grumbled, knowing fully well that his partner in crime only ever used his full name to annoy him. He wished he had never known his real name, it was just so stupid. "I swear you will get arrested someday, Green. It's not that you're not careful or that you don't know what you're doing: you just don't know when to quit or to let things go. Like that egg." Les said, gesturing to the egg in Green's arms.

At the mention of it, Green held the egg tighter in his arms. "Well if we don't go for the gold, then what's the point? This egg is the reason I suggested the job in the first place. And I _do_ know what I'm doing. I didn't get caught, did I? Nope. And you know why? I knew you would help me out. You always do." Green said, staring ahead boringly at the horizon. He could see the ocean and the coast of Vermilion City from here. Was there anything worth stealing there?

"Yeah, I do save your sorry ass too much. And that's only because you're worth more than the problems you give me. We've been working together for five years and I still have no freaking idea how the hell you always know what to steal, what'll be worth the most money. But hey, I guess as long as we keep bringing in money, then I shouldn't have much to complain about." Les said, chuckling. Green scowled. Les saw Green's expression and rolled his eyes. He knew what was coming next.

"It's not enough, Les. Even though we've been bringing in twice as much cash as the executives ever did since I was a kid, we're still on the bottom of the food chain. We're still sticking around in the base under the Game Corner with other grunts while the Boss and executives have moved on to who-knows-where. No one's ever given us any credit; we just bring in the money and get a pat on the head, as if the feeling of accomplishment is supposed to be enough. And it's probably because we're younger than everyone else. I'm sick of it." Green went on, not noticing that Les was ignoring him for the most part.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. You've said it all before. Bottom of the food chain and all that jazz. I get it. I'll have you know that I do not give a shit. I've got food and a roof over my head. I've got something to do every day. That's all that matters to me. I don't understand why you want to go higher up anyway, it gets more and more boring. It gets less criminal and more… corporate. It's boring. I bet you even have to pay for rent or something, too." Les went on, knowing his argument would be in vain anyhow.

Surprisingly, Green made no further comment. Usually the topic of the Team Rocket Food Chain (as they liked to call it) would go on for a while. The sun was setting on the horizon when they set foot on the tiled road in front of the Game Corner, the number one place for people to lose their money that has substituted as Les and Green's home for years. Returning Crobat and Aerodactyl to their respective Pokéballs, the young Rockets entered the miniature building right next to the Game Corner, the part where coins can be cashed in for prizes.

At the counter was a Rocket grunt out of uniform, acting as an everyday clerk. Seeing Les and Green approach, he leaned on the counter, ready for business. Les set three Pokéballs on the counter. "Jolteon, Flareon and Vaporeon from Bill, the guy who invented the PC storage system. Rare Pokémon from a very valuable owner. We also found this egg to boot." Les said, gesturing to the egg in Green's arms. Les noticed that Green did not set the egg on the counter, and was still holding onto it as if it were of importance to him.

"Nicely done. These are some pretty rare Pokémon, they'll fetch a great price. Of course we could always use them to breed Eevees and sell those. Now what's in the egg?" the Rocket cashier asked, pointing at the brown egg with the cream-coloured stripe zigzagging across the middle of it. Les waited for Green to speak, and when he didn't, Les spoke for him. "Well since Bill had the Vaporeon, Flareon and Jolteon, I think it's safe to assume that this egg—"

"Is not for sale. This is our personal loot." Green snapped, interrupting Les. The young Rocket blinked in surprise. Green never acted up like this when handing over their spoils to the higher-ups. Why was he so obsessed over this little egg? "Alright then. Anyway, these three beauties are enough; we'll make plenty of money off of them. Now get to bed, kids like you need sleep." The cashier said with a grin, demeaning the two of them. Rather than retorting like he usually would, Green was the first to leave, Les confusingly following behind him.

"Hey, what gives? You're holding on to that egg like it's your lifeline." Les asked Green as they entered the Game Corner and headed to the back. Green just shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly, pretending that he wasn't acting up. Les said nothing and flicked the secret switch under a poster at the back of the Game Corner, revealing a stair case that went below. Les and Green headed down stairs, ignoring the few Rocket grunts that were drinking and laughing and not doing their jobs.

In the bunk room, Green set the egg on his bed before he went to remove his shirt. Before he could, however, Les put a hand on his shoulder. Green looked up to find that Les was staring down at him in a very serious manner. "Why are you so concerned with having an Eevee? I know it's a rare Pokémon, but you've never cared for the rare types. Your team consists of Crobat, Onix, Raticate and Machoke. So why bother with Eevee? It'll probably be too weak to train anyways." Les said.

Green leaned against the wall by the door. "Weak or not, I can train it. You know I can. I got Crobat from Zubat, Raticate from Rattata, Machoke from Machop and an awesome Onix from a weak one. Most Rockets around here are still stuck with their Zubats or Koffings. I can train this Eevee to be powerful without even having to evolve it." Green explained. What he said was true, and perhaps Les should just leave it at that, but he was still curious. There was more to this. Hell, Green didn't even try catching a Dratini or Kangaskhan that one time they were at the Safari Zone.

"So why else? The way you were acting today, it seems like there's a more… personal connection between you and the egg. Come on, tell me." Les insisted. Green sighed. Les would not drop the subject until he knew every little detail. Green knew he had to answer his question, but he didn't really want to. In truth, there really was a personal connection. "Okay fine, I'll tell. You know how I was forced to join Team Rocket five years ago? And how I lived in Pallet Town before that?" Green asked. Les nodded his head, and gestured for Green to go on.

"Well, the day I was taken from Pallet Town was the same day I was supposed to get a Pokémon and start my journey as a Pokémon trainer. My grandfather was supposed to give me an Eevee. I've wanted an Eevee ever since. So as soon as I heard that Bill had those three 'Eeveelutions' I practically jumped at the chance to take them. I really wanted an Eevee, so I did what I had to do to get one." Green explained. He braced himself for the laughter and mocking that was sure to come, but odd enough, Les did not tease him. Green looked up and saw that Les had been listening to him calmly with a neutral expression.

"Well, you've finally got one. That's something to be happy about. Hey, maybe you're happy enough that you won't bitch about the Team Rocket Food Chain or how you hate everything for a while?" Les asked with a playful smirk upon his face. Green smirked back and straightened up. "Not a chance. I hate everyone but myself." Green said, resting his chin on his arms at the side of his bunk bed, staring at Eevee's egg.

Les shrugged his shoulders. "I tried. Anyway, I'm gonna go see what those assholes out there are drinking. I'll be back if it's not vodka." Les said, leaving the room. Green rolled his eyes. He'd been drinking since he was twelve, but he never drank as much as everyone else did. Les didn't drink as much either, but he still drank twice as much as Green did. Mostly vodka. Green didn't really understand why people did it so much. To him it always resulted in a horrible head ache.

The silence of the bunk room was broken when Green heard a loud crack. Blinking, he straightened up and stared at the egg in front of him. It couldn't be already… could it? But then to Green's excitement, a wide crack spread across the egg shell. Yes, it was definitely hatching. Green smiled like a little kid on Christmas morning and he watched the egg crack more and more, his heart racing. Soon the egg shattered and among broken shells was a baby brown fox with long ears, a bushy tail and wide, curious eyes.

"H… hello." Green said quietly, startling the Eevee a bit. It quickly overcame its sudden fear of the human before her, and smiled as she cried out happily at the sight of her new trainer. Green gently hugged the tiny Pokémon, and it hugged him back. "I'll call you Vee. Is that okay?" Green asked. Vee let out another joyful cry in agreement. Green could hardly contain his excitement. He actually had an Eevee now, the one Pokémon he's always wanted.

Green heard footsteps down the hall, and knew that someone would be coming in. He couldn't let anyone else know that he had a rare Pokémon on him. A rather drunk Rocket grunt nearly mugged him of his Crobat once. Green hurried to take out a Pokéball. "Okay I'm just going to put you in this, but I'll let you out later, cool?" Green asked, showing Vee the Pokéball. She sniffed the Pokéball and backed away from it.

"No, no, there's no reason to be scared, it's comfortable in there. Just let me put you in there, okay? It won't hurt, and I'll let you out as soon as I can, I—"Green was silenced when Vee tackled him in the face, making him fall to the floor. Rubbing the back of his head in pain, Green winced as Vee sat on his stomach, looking down at him as if to say; 'I do not care what you intend to do with me, I am not going in there.'

"Look," Green sighed, "If someone else sees you, they're going to take you away and then I don't know what will happen to you. I don't want that. Please, just hide in here until it's safe. I promise I'll let you out as soon as I can." Green insisted. Vee considered this before finally giving in and touching the Pokéball's button with her nose, allowing herself to be captured. Green stood up and pocketed the Pokéball just as the door to the bunk room was opened.

"Hey Green," Les started, "Turns out most of the guys aren't too drunk. A bunch of us are going to a brothel. You going?" Les asked. Green shook his head and brushed the dust off the back of his shirt from the floor. Les went over and helped him. "Come on, it'll be fun. Besides, it's not like you're a virgin. Didn't you do it with some chick from Johto who stayed at the Celadon Hotel when you were thirteen?" Les asked. Green ignored him and climbed onto his bunk, lying with his back to Les.

"I know you haven't gotten laid since then. You've got more money saved up in your mattress than anyone can count anyway, and most of the women at the place we're going to are dirt cheap. You hardly let yourself have any fun, come with us for a change." Les said. Green sighed, not really wanting to believe that what Les was saying was true. But it was. Green sat up and reached down into the mattress where he kept his money, taking out a rather large wad of cash.

***

"See anyone you want yet?" Les asked Green as they leaned against a wall in the front foyer of the mansion where most of the women found their customers waiting for service. Green shrugged his shoulders. He didn't really want to be here, and he wasn't sure why he even came with Les. He would have been better off getting some sleep for a change. Green wasn't really too eager to waste his money on something he didn't really want, either. He had been saving nearly all of his money ever since he was forced to join Team Rocket, and never wasted a cent.

To make matters worse for him, Green was soon left alone when Les spotted a red-haired girl who took his interest and briskly walked up to her in the crowd. Green sighed and hit his head back against the wall. It was only moments before he felt the presence of someone in front of him, and he found himself looking up at a blonde woman wearing way too much make-up. "Hey, looking for a date?" the woman asked. Green only nodded his head. He was here and he had money, he might as well get some.

The woman led Green down a corridor, looking for a vacant room. Green was glancing all around as the woman went around knocking on doors, and the moment the woman finally found an empty room was the same moment Green saw someone different at the end of the hallway who didn't look like a customer or a prostitute. Whoever it was, they had gone down another hallway as soon as they appeared. Green felt like the person was familiar, and he started walking down the corridor.

"Hey, wait! Where are you going?" the blonde woman asked, stopping Green. He took out half the cash he had on him and handed it to her. "Thanks anyway, keep it." was all Green said as he fast-walked down the hall and around the corner. He got a quick glance of the familiar person going around another corner, and Green went down that corridor. When he made it around that corner, however, there was a dead end at the end of the hall. Now which door had the person gone into?

-

Red dropped a large wad of cash onto Charleston's desk as he was reading what appeared to be an erotic horror novel. Charleston glanced at the cash and then at Red curiously before checking his watch. "It's pretty early for you. Sure you're done?" Charleston asked, counting the money. Red folded his arms and turned his back to Charleston. "Yeah," Red started, "I'm done for the night." He said, heading for the door. Red reached out for the door knob.

"Hold up," Charleston said. Red's hand froze on the door knob. He looked over his shoulder. What was it now? "You're a hundred Poké short. I'm not that stupid, I can count money. Now hand over the hundred." Charleston said. Red was a hundred Poké short? How? He always met the quota, at least ever since he found out what happened when he didn't. He was sure he had met tonight's quota. Unless… perhaps someone ripped him off? It's certainly happened before.

"I'll go get it." Red said simply before opening the door, and immediately finding himself face-to-face with someone. Red shut the door behind him. Looks like he just found his money. Or at least he would have, if not for the stranger's outfit. As soon as Red saw the Rocket uniform, he felt panic arise and he ran down the corridor. "H-hey, wait!" the Rocket called, running after Red. How did Red not recognize him? Green certainly recognized Red as soon as he saw him. Why the hell was Red running?

Green had no time to question what Red was doing here or why, he could only chase after his childhood friend. Just as Green turned yet another corner, he saw Red run into a room and shut the door behind him. Green went over, opened the door, and entered the dark room before closing the door behind him. The window was wide open, but the new moon hardly offered any light to illuminate the room. Green glanced around. Where had Red gone? Surely not out the window?

With fear making his heart pound, Green ran over to the window and looked down at the ground below. He couldn't see anyone and there was no rope or anything, so perhaps Red was still in the room? Green turned around to see Red sneaking over to the door, silent as a Rattata. Red saw that he was caught, and he ran to open the door. Green was still faster and slammed the door with both arms, trapping Red in between.

"Y-you don't have to pay me!" Red stuttered nervously, shutting his eyes tight. Green only furrowed his brow in confusion as he stared at Red. "You can do w-what you want to me… I-I don't even want money, keep it—just please don't hurt me…!" Red pleaded, tears trailing black lines down his face. Red cursed and took out a tissue to wipe the ruined mascara from his face. Green blinked down at him. "You're… wearing make-up?" he asked.

Red continued to try and clean his face. "Of course I'm wearing make-up, everyone here does." Red said, as if Green should know that. Green looked down at Red and finally got a good look at him. He was wearing short shorts, a skin-tight white tank top and high heels. Wait, how the hell does anyone run in high heels? Anyway, Green finally came to the realization as to why the hell Red was here. While Green was forced to join Team Rocket years ago, Red was made a whore.

"Red… don't you know who I am?" Green asked. Red nodded his head as he wiped his eyes. "You're a Rocket. A criminal." Red said simply, putting away the tissue at last. Green couldn't believe what he was hearing. Red not only didn't question how Green even knew his name, but he didn't even recognize his best friend. Green had recognized him immediately, even while wearing make-up. "Red, it's me. I'm Green Oak, your best friend?" Green said quietly.

Red whipped his head up and stared at Green with intensity. His eyes widened when he finally recognized Green. The first thing he did at that moment was nearly tackle Green to the floor as he wrapped his arms around Green's neck in a tight hug before he started sobbing quietly into his shoulder. Green swallowed hard, and simply hugged Red back and told him that everything was alright. Green couldn't even imagine what Red had been through in the past five years, and he wasn't sure he wanted to know.

At that moment, Green seemed to be awakened. For the past five years he had blindly committed crimes all over Kanto just to stay in line and remain loyal to Team Rocket, fearing what would happen to him if he ever once stepped out of line. Not once did Green ever break one of Team Rocket's rules or go a day without doing something wrong to please the higher-ups. Not once did he ever think about his old dreams, his old home, the people he knew. He didn't even think about Red.

But now that Green was here with Red, everything seemed to come back at him in a flash. His childhood spent in Pallet Town with Red, all the dreams they shared. Everything that was before Team Rocket attacked Pallet Town that one dreadful day. Green remembered it all. And, for the first time in five years, he wanted it all back. He wanted out of Team Rocket, and he didn't care what they would do to him. He just wanted things to go back to the way things were before.

But could they? Green was a criminal now. He's done so much wrong it would be impossible to even think about trying to make up for it. And here was Red, crying on his shoulder. But wait. That was the first step. In order for life to be fulfilling again, it all started with Red. After all, if Green hadn't seen his childhood friend for the first time in five years, wouldn't Green just go home and steal something tomorrow? If Green was ever going to really enjoy life again, he had to stick with Red. But how?

"Red…" Green started. Red stopped his sobbing and sniffled, looking up at Green. The brunette smiled down at him empathetically. "Let's get out of here." Green suggested. Red stared at Green in shock. Get out of here? Just simply leave? Red couldn't do that. He hadn't tried to leave the brothel since he first tried to run away, which only resulted in him nearly getting killed. Ever since then, Red had only done what he was told to do. He never once thought of leaving again. He had long since forgotten his old home, his old life.

But now, as he saw Green for the first time in years, he remembered. Red remembered all that he had done and all that he had hoped to be. And he finally saw just what he had become. And upon seeing Green in his Team Rocket uniform, he saw what Green had become too. And he hated that. He hated what had happened to him and Green. And he wanted to be rid of that. He wanted him and Green to go back to the way they were five years ago. He would love to just leave with Green, but it was impossible.

"I can't leave. If I try to leave, I'll get hurt…" Red said quietly. Green wasn't too surprised to hear this. If Red hadn't been severely punished for trying to escape this hell hole, then Red would probably be gone by now. The fact that Red remained here only proved how terrified he was. Green knew exactly how he felt. He had been in the same position for the past five years as well.

"No you won't. We'll run away together; you'll run from here and I'll run from Team Rocket. We need to get out of here, Red. I don't know what you've been through, but I can only assume it's been hell. We can talk more when we're gone. Let's just leave this place. We can go, and by the time anyone knows we're missing, we'll already have started life all over again. I don't know about you, but just seeing you here had reminded me of home. And that's where I want to go now. And I'm not comfortable with leaving you here. So what do you say?" Green asked, taking a step back from Red and holding out his hand.

Red stared at it. He wanted no more than to leave with Green. But he still wasn't convinced that he would be safe. "I… what if Charleston actually does find us?" Red asked. Green had no idea who this Charleston guy was, but he imagined him to be the one who has hurt Red the most in the past few years. "Then my Onix will scare him away. If it doesn't, my Crobat can poison him. Or I could get my Raticate to bite him. I'm not going to let some asshole get to us, Red." Green said.

For the first time in years, Red felt safe. Green was here for him now, and he wouldn't let anyone hurt Red. At least that's the impression Red was getting. Red no longer hesitated to take Green's hand in his. "Alright, let's go. Where are we going?" Red asked. Green shrugged his shoulders and put his hands in his pockets. "Well, I was hoping to head to Pallet Town after so long. But I think right now we should find a place to stay for the night, and here is not an option. Do you think there's anywhere in Viridian City we could go?" Green asked.

Red nodded his head, and left the room. He knew a perfect place that no one would bother to check. But first, Red had to go get something. He led Green down several corridors and down some flights of stairs until he finally stopped in front of a room. Red entered it without knocking, and ran inside. Green went in and watched Red go to the closet. Red opened the closet door and knelt down, removing a floor board. Underneath were four Pokeballs, money, a pair of jeans, running shoes, a few pairs of short shorts and various tops.

Red took out the jeans and a black t-shirt and proceeded to change right in front of Green, apparently oblivious to his presence. Instead of looking away, Green ended up staring as Red stripped down with his back to the closet. Green had tried to look away, but he couldn't help but keep on staring when he saw Red in nothing but a lacy undergarment that was clearly for women. Unfortunately, Red eventually had to get dressed in his jeans, black t-shirt and running shoes.

Red pocketed the four Pokeballs he had with what little money he had managed to save over the years being here. Red looked down at the few other outfits he had, the revealing ones he used to get customers. He really didn't want those, but he didn't have any other clothes. Then again, he didn't want to carry anything either. Red left the outfits as they were, not even bothering to put the floor board back or even close the closet.

"I've got all I need. You?" Red asked. Green had no other clothing, all his Pokémon were with him, and he still had quite a bit of money on him. Still, it'd be nice to have all that money Green had in his mattress. But there was no going back now. "I'm ready. Let's go to Viridian City. I think we can just walk out without anyone noticing us." Green said, heading for the door. He stopped and turned around when he noticed that Red hadn't moved.

"Is something wrong?" Green asked. Red blinked, and stared at his shoes. "Well… I don't like you wearing that Rocket uniform. I mean, people will notice that. We'll be found quickly if you wear that." Red said, covering up the fact that he was terrified of Team Rocket after what they had done to him. Green didn't notice this, and agreed with Red. He removed his uniform top with the crimson 'R' on it, but no more. He just hoped he wouldn't be cold or anything in his undershirt. "Alright, let's go now. I want to get out of here as soon as I can." Green said, dropping the uniform shirt to the floor and leaving the room.

-

"You're a genius, Red. No one would ever think to look here. Heck, the guy hasn't even been here when we were kids. He's probably long gone." Green said as he and Red stood in front of the building in Viridian City that Red told Green about. It was the abandoned Viridian Gym. Its leader had been gone for years and no one has entered the boarded-up building since. Red and Green slipped in between the boards and entered the building. They wandered a few dark hallways until they came across the only door left in the building.

Upon opening the door, they discovered a storage room. All that was left of it were a few benches and some musty towels. "Well this is convenient." Green said, taking a towel and sitting on a bench. Red did the same, sitting on a bench next to Green. "Hey, can we talk now? We haven't seen each other in years." Green said. Red yawned, and lay down on his bench. He spread the towel over himself. "I'm too tired. We'll talk tomorrow." Red said evasively.

Green blinked down at him. He wanted no more than to ask Red all about what had happened to him, and he wanted to tell Red all about what happened to him in the past five years. But if Red was tired, then Green couldn't really help it. He should probably get some sleep anyway. Tomorrow they could talk. First they would go home, to Pallet Town. Green was really looking forward to it, but he couldn't really say what it was he was looking forward to. Certainly not his grandfather, but Daisy would still be there too, right?

-Meanwhile—

"What the hell do you mean the runt ran off?" Charleston demanded as the few Rockets who were sobered up stood in the bedroom. Les was one of them, holding Green's uniform shirt and wondering why the hell his partner was stupid enough to make a run for it. He could only hope that Green was just drunk and had a good excuse for this, and that he wouldn't get punished. But that was most unlikely, and he knew it.

"You heard me. One of your whores clearly ran off, and one of our guys went with her—uh, him. And that's all there is to it." A Rocket said. Charleston was furious. It took all his willpower not to punch the Rocket in the face and start a brawl. "Well I'm blaming your guy for this; my money-making runt hasn't tried to run away in five years, not after I gave him a beating for it! I don't care what the hell your guy's doing, I just want my damn whore back!" Charleston yelled.

"Calm your shit, Charleston, we'll get on to it. We can find your slut for you if he's with our guy. Les, hand over the shirt." The Rocket said. Les reluctantly handed over Green's uniform shirt. Les always had a gut feeling that Green wasn't too happy being a member of Team Rocket, and he probably wasn't after being forced into it, but Les never thought that Green would do something so daring like this. He wasn't sure whether he should be happy for Green or worried sick. Even so, life around the base and on jobs wouldn't be the same. Green was his only friend.

The Rocket holding Green's uniform shirt sent out his Houndoom and had it smell the uniform shirt. The Houndoom then sniffed around the room until it got a scent, and went down the hall. "If your slut is really with Green, then we'll find him for you. Don't worry, we'll leave him in one piece for you. Can't really say the same about Green, though." The Rocket said, leaving the room. Les nervously ran after him. "I couldn't care less about this Green dude, just get me my money-maker!" Charleston yelled down the hallway as the Rockets left the building.


End file.
